EFF slams the mining charter, calls it nonsense

The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) have come out in opposition against the mining charter which they have labelled “nonsense” and “another capitulation by the ruling ANC to beneficiaries of apartheid racist economy”.

Mineral Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe on Thursday presented a revamped mining charter with a raft of legislative changes, including prescriptions for black ownership, aimed at improving the South African industry to better the lives of workers, junior miners, small suppliers, and mining communities.

Mantashe said the charter, which was being gazetted on Thursday, was not perfect and would not make all stakeholders happy, but was a consensus that everyone could live with after intensive engagements with mining companies, financial institutions, the legal fraternity, investors, mining communities, and the cabinet.

The new black economic empowerment (BEE) shareholding structure will require mining companies to set a minimum of 5% non-transferable carried interest to qualifying employees, the same amount or a minimum 5% equity equivalent benefit to host communities, and a minimum of 20% share ownership to a BEE partner of which a 5% minimum must preferably be for women.

ALSO READ: New Mining Charter ‘expected to disregard communities even more’

In terms of employment equity, the charter requires companies to achieve a minimum of 50% black representation at board and executive management level, of which 20% must be women; 60% black senior and middle management, of which 25% must be women; and 70% junior management with 30% being women; while employees with disabilities should constitute at least 1.5%.

“Mining companies, like they did before, will opportunistically comply with the 30% and later on push out the charter prescribed shareholders after years of dividends as they loot proceeds of mining through aggressive tax avoidance,” stated the EFF.

The party went on to add that there was a rampant practice of ‘fronting’ in the mining sector which called the reported numbers of those who meet the ownership targets into question.

The EFF also slammed the ANC government’s decision to withdraw the mineral and petroleum resources development amendment bill which they believe would have aided in the creation of a “functional state-owned mining company with strategic control of mineral resources for local benefaction”.

For more news your way, download The Citizen’s app for iOS and Android.